Add: Fur Coat

The book shimmered again.

The image shifted.

No longer did it show her crouched on the step of the spring, naked and humiliated. Now, the picture had changed. Stephanie stood thigh-deep in the water, her skin still pink with cold, the magical glasses on her nose. But she wasn’t entirely exposed anymore.

She blinked, confused by the shift in the air and the weight on her shoulders. Then she gasped.

She was still naked underneath, but now she wore a thick, heavy fur coat. It hung over her shoulders like a forgotten relic of royalty—dark, mottled gray and black. But it was open, and the image on the book had captured her in the moment before she realized that, displaying her again to every reader watching the page.

Stephanie let out a groan and quickly yanked the coat shut. Her fingers trembled as she fumbled to find the buttons. "Thanks, I guess," she muttered. "I guess a real outfit was outside of your immaculate imagination."

"I would advise not antagonizing them," I typed back. "Your dignity is kind of in their hands now."

She huffed through her nose, cheeks burning as she glanced again at the image on the page. "Yeah... I suppose."

Still clutching the coat tightly around herself, she stepped out of the water and walked over to a stone bench just off the pool’s edge. The mountain air was sharp, and the coat was warm—but the water had seeped into her bones. Her bare feet made soft, wet prints on the stone as she walked.

She sat, tucking her legs up to keep them warm beneath the coat. Her expression blanked. The minutes passed.

Two.

Five.

Ten.

Twenty.

The screen didn’t change. The story didn’t move.

I typed. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for this chapter to end," she said flatly. "When it does, I'm going to ask them for more clothes."

"I don’t think that’s going to work."

"Why not?"

"You’ve been sitting there for twenty minutes. But for me, it’s only been a few sentences."

Her brow furrowed. "You skipped forward again."

"It’s not my fault," I replied. "You weren’t doing anything."

She stiffened. "So it’s my fault?"

"Don’t get pissy with me. I’m only trying to help."

Stephanie groaned, burying her face in her hands before lowering them with a long breath. "Fine. What do I need to do?"

"Well, a chapter follows characters doing things. Working to achieve something. So I guess this chapter can’t end until you do something."

"Done," she retorted. "I’m here, waiting to get more clothes. End the chapter."

"I can’t. The screen won’t let me. You’re not actually doing anything."

"Argh!" she grunted and stood. Her coat swirled open briefly before she clutched it shut again. She looked up at the long path of stairs climbing the mountain. "The library was warm. I’ll fucking walk back up there then."

She took a single, determined step forward—and time froze. The shimmer of magic returned.

Chapter End.

"Oh come on!" she cried into the frozen air. "Okay, readers." She said quickly. "I really appreciate this coat, but I would love something more..."

The page turned.

(Ginger, white, very curly messy hair, small breasts, tall, smart, magical glasses, robes, rebellious, rested, bathing, fur coat)